Trust only movement. Life happens at the level of events, not of words. Trust movement.

&mdash Alfred Adler (1870-1937)

Friday, May 04, 2007

Shoryuken!

Pacanukeha forwarded this fascinating article on a Stanford research team's findings when they hooked a tai chi master up to sophisticated motion-capture gear. The money quote:

Jessica Rose, an orthopedic surgery professor at Stanford, could not believe her eyes.

Tai chi master Chen Xiang, sensor balls taped to key body joints, was demonstrating palm, elbow and fist strikes so fast &mpersand and with such force &mpersand that the sensors kept flying off his body.

And then she glanced at her computer screen, where Chen's movements were mirrored by an animated stick figure. Like a light-footed dancing skeleton, the figure's grace was undeniable. And frightening. The explosive power of the strikes was stunning - 400 pounds of force generated by Chen's body accelerating from 0 mph to 60 mph in 2.8 seconds - faster than any Lamborghini out on the street.